Eyes Open
by feint heart
Summary: For as long as she can remember, Mei Baransu was told that she is different. She honestly just wished someone would clue her in on why she was apparently so goddamn special. Between fighting to keep her precious people alive, trying to uncover the secrets of her clan, and finding the patience to not strangle Kakashi, Mei's hands were full. (Rated M for language and violence.)
1. Prologue: An Introduction to Destruction

**Hello, everyone! I'm so excited to share this story I've been working on with you. Just a heads up, it's in the very beginning stages of being thought out. Any criticism is welcome, but please try to be kind. Also, another note, I don't know jack about honorifics. Please feel free to correct me when I'm wrong, so I can go back and fix it.**

 **Anyway, please enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing but Mei and her people**

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The sun was long gone, having set hours before. The night sky was blocked by the blur of tree tops as the masked ANBU raced through the forest. It was painfully quiet at this hour, and the rustling leaves due to the speed at which the ANBU traveled sounded like a blaring alarm compared to the silence all around. It made him twitchy, because all of his movements were very obviously audible to the trained ear. Be that as it may, he had made the choice earlier to give up stealth in favor of speed. This was a mission where speed was what would make or break the outcome. It was a deadly race to the finish line, and for now, he was winning.

He looked down briefly as the weight in his arms shifted on its own, seemingly burrowing itself closer to his vest.

The ANBU carried the toddler as tightly as he could without crushing the thing while jumping from tree branch to tree branch at top speed. His eyes watered as wind blasted through the holes of the mask. The rest of his team was about twenty kilometers behind, buying him as much time as they could. All he had to do was get the child to the team waiting to transport it to Konoha. At the speed he was traveling, he'd make it to the team within half an hour. He only had to survive for half an hour.

It was unclear to the ANBU who would be waiting at the rendezvous point, but it wasn't his job to ask questions. He was a shinobi first and foremost, and that meant he followed orders and shut his mouth. Right now, his only mission was to keep the kid alive and out of enemy arms until he could transfer it to the awaiting team. If he were to slow down even a fraction of a second, it was all over. He knew that even with his teammates keeping the enemy busy, they were much too dangerous for any lag.

The ANBU allowed himself to glance down at the toddler, if only for a second. It slept peacefully, unaware of the chaos around it. It was swaddled in a blue blanket in his arm, and even in the low light, the ANBU could make out the stark contrast of milky skin and the wine-colored hair on its head. The drying flecks of blood on its face were a sickening image - almost as if they were freckles, but he knew better. It was not something he had ever thought he'd see, and now that the image was burned in his mind, an urge to empty his stomach was present. Children and bloodshed were two things that should not mix. Unfortunately, the ANBU knew that in this world, they often do.

He didn't know what made this child so special, he didn't understand why they had been ordered to only protect the kid should things go south, _and boy, had things gone south._ They had left behind so many others, and the ANBU knew he'd have nightmares about the sound of dozens of people dying as he ran in the _opposite_ direction. But that's what being a shinobi - especially ANBU Black Ops - was all about: following orders, doing what was hard in order to protect the village.

The mission had sounded easy. A simple extraction mission, nothing was meant to go too horribly wrong. They were sent to escort the child and its mother from Kirigakure due to rumors of an impending attack on the clan because of the fear the village held for their kekkie genkai. The Third Hokage had told the ANBU that the clan was an ally of theirs, one that they couldn't afford to lose. The child and its mother had been offered sanctuary in Konoha while the rest of the clan fought for their right to live.

There was something special about the child worth saving, according the mother.

"She's one of a kind," the mother had said, smiling softly at the child cradled in her arms. "And I'm not just saying that because she's my daughter," the woman laughed, tucking the blanket a little tighter around her child. "She will save us all. So much power in such a precious child -" And then her eyes went wide, a shocked gasp leaving her mouth. The mother had made a choked sound next, like there was something stuck in her throat, and then there was blood oozing out of her mouth. The ANBU's breath hitched when it began to drip down her chin, onto the sleeping child's face.

His team had sprung into action, trying to locate the attacker and check for more threats. The ANBU, however, maintained eye contact with the mother as her blue eyes began to glow - _yes, glow_ \- and she struggled to talk once again.

"He's here," she gurgled, blood bubbling in the back of her throat like mouthwash, "take her and _run_." The glow in her eyes - most likely a side effect of the kekkie genkai - started to fade at an alarming rate, transforming into a vacant, deathly gray color. She was _dying_.

The ANBU had finally sprang into action when she began to fall forward, arms outstretched in an unsteady attempt to hand her child over to safety. It had woken up at this point, crying loudly as droplets of blood fell of its forehead. Pulling the crying child into his arm, he caught the woman against his shoulder awkwardly, struggling to keep her limp form balanced on it. Looking over her shoulder, he had noticed two kunai embedded in her backside - one at her lower back, the other right in-between her shoulder blades. Her dress had been pure white when he had met her, as he looked at it then, it was like a canvas painted dark red

His teammate, Rat, grabbed the mother, lifting the weight off of him. Rat gently placed the woman on the ground and began checking for a pulse. The cacophony of grunts, screams, and flesh being torn open raged on. In the distance, the sound of the rest of the clan being attacked grew louder.

The ANBU turned suddenly, sensing someone right behind him. The child was cradled in his right arm, while his left hand wielded a kunai – ready to attack. The first thing he noticed was the enemy's smile - sharp enough to be a weapon. The man's hair had been the color of dark grapes, falling over his eyes, and casting distorted shadows on his face. The second thing he noticed was that the enemy wasn't looking at him. The enemy was looking at the child, and the ANBU felt something protective surge. He positioned the child out of view of the man, and held his kunai up protectively.

"I'm going to ask you once to hand over the child. I'll even say please," the man's smile grew into a full grin. " _Please_ , ANBU-san, hand over the child." Without waiting for an answer, the man charged the ANBU. Before the ANBU had a chance to act, one of his teammates was there - Panda - taking on the enemy alone.

Panda deflected the man's attack and kicked his leg out in a sweeping motion faster than the ANBU's eye could track. The enemy dodge, jumping back and creating enough distance for Panda to address the ANBU.

"You need to go," Panda, the appointed captain, had said. His back was to the ANBU as he fought off the enemy, whose eyes had taken on a fiery glint. "Take the kid to the rendezvous point. We'll hold them off as long as we can." The ANBU hesitated. " _Go now_ ," Panda snarled, baring his teeth, "That's an order!"

He nodded, secured the crying mass against his vest, and ran like hell. The further he got, the more the noises of battle began to fuse together. Nothing specific stuck out any longer - it was all one roar of war. After that he had used his chakra to send the child into sleep. It would be easier for both of them that way. _It's only a matter of time before they realize I took the child,_ the ANBU had thought to himself.

Snapping out of his memories, the ANBU realized he was approaching the meeting point. He could sense of the charka of a single person. But that didn't make sense. A mission of this importance required an entire team of shinobi. He hoped he was mistaken, that the Hokage was not ignorant enough to only send one ninja to transport the child, and that there were more allies scattered about the forest.

And then the ANBU saw who was waiting at the clearing, the moon lighting up his silhouette. The person's back was to him, but he didn't need to see his face to recognize who the yellow hair belonged to.

Minato Namikaze. One of Konoha's most elite, even at such a young age.

"Fox," Minato greeted, turning to face the ANBU, "what's your status?"

He shook his head, handing the kid over to Minato's awaiting arms. "I must go back to help. The situation has escalated. The attack happened sooner than we thought." The ANBU paused, watching as Minato awkwardly shifted the sleeping child in his arms. "The mother…. didn't make it. I used my chakra to put the child to sleep. You should be good for the trip -" And suddenly the ANBU felt pain blossom throughout his entire body, focused at a point in his lower back.

He remembered Minato looking at a point behind him, most likely where the enemy was. Minato looked like he was about the help the ANBU, but he shook his head and looked the yellow haired man in the eyes. He used his last bit of energy to speak his next words, the world closing in around him. "They're after the kid. S-save," he took a deep, shuddering breath, "save the child, Minato-san."

The last thing he remembered was dropping like a log, looking up at Minato, the grass damp under his cheek. There was a flash of yellow, and then the everything went black.

Minato flashed them using the Flying Thunder God jutsu multiple times, each one taking them closer and closer to Konoha. His chakra was dwindling with the long trip from Kiri to Konoha, but he couldn't afford to take it slow. When he had left the clearing - left Fox to die - the enemy was _right fucking there_. No - there wasn't a second to spare.

After what felt like a short lifetime, Minato flashed just inside the gates of Konoha, making one of the guard's shriek loudly and abruptly stand from his desk, accidentally knocking the chair behind him to the ground. He opened his mouth to yell about an intruder, realized it was Minato, and promptly shut his mouth in a tight, _very_ unhappy line. Minato offered a brief, apologetic smile before flashing into the Third Hokage's office.

Minato took a moment to study the child in his arms. Its face was peaceful - most likely due to the deep, chakra induced sleep. _How tragic,_ Minato thought to himself _, this child will most likely be the sole survivor of its clan._ He fought the urge to push its hair back from its forehead and scrub away all of the dried blood. The child couldn't be more than four years old, and it had lost its family in such a _violent_ way. He wondered what its name was.

"Mei Baransu." Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, stood from his desk, pipe between his lips even during such a dire situation. Minato hadn't realized he spoke that aloud.

"Hokage-sama," Minato said, bowing slightly. The child fussed when he did this, and everyone in the room froze. They were shinobi - trained to kill and protect the village. A crying little girl, however, seemed like too much to handle for the God of Shinobi, Konoha's Yellow Flash, and all of the lethal ANBU Black Ops in the room.

The Hokage dismissed all but his most trusted ANBU from the room. He activated his privacy seals before taking a seat behind his desk again. Minato felt the seals dampen the room with chakra, making their conversation indiscernible from beyond this room. This was top secret - the most secure place in all of Konoha.

"Minato," the Hokage took a long drag of his pipe, before blowing the smoke out of his nose, "I need a report."

"Right, Hokage-sama." Minato looked at the sleeping toddler in his arms, wondering when she would wake up. He wondered who would tell her what happened. "I met Fox at the rendezvous location. He seemed panicked," Minato thought back on the way Fox's chakra moved through the forest. He had used it recklessly - overexerting it to the extreme, nearing chakra exhaustion when he found Minato. It was almost like he _knew_ he wasn't going to make it out alive. "He told me that the attack on the clan happened sooner than we had anticipated. And the child's mother - well, she didn't make it." The Hokage nodded, urging Minato to go on. "After that… something attacked Fox, but I couldn't see who or what it was. I started flashing us towards Konoha as fast as I could," Minato continued, "none of the enemies managed to keep up. But…" He paused, eyes downcast as he shook his head, "Fox is dead, and I'm sure the rest of his team is too."

"What else?" The Hokage asked, knowing Minato well enough to know when he was holding something back.

Minato paused, adjusting the child into a more comfortable position. Her head rested on his shoulder now as he held the underneath of her legs. At least, he assumed it was a more comfortable position – as young as he was, his experience with children was minimal. And in this case, minimal meant zero experience. When the girl unconsciously moved her arms from her side to hook them around his neck and burrow her head closer to his shoulder, he took that as a good sign that she was comfy. "Fox said they were after the child."

"I see," the Hokage murmured thoughtfully.

"Lord Hokage, it seems to me like the attack was meant to wipe out the Baransu clan, but kidnap the child."

The Hokage nodded at this revelation, stroking his beard. "We have been allied with the Baransu since the Hidden Mist showed signs of aggression towards them." The Hokage finally spoke, voice somber. "They've fed us priceless information regarding Kiri, and we had many debts owed to them. It's unfortunate we couldn't save more of them, as I believe they would have been a powerful ally to Konoha. Their kekkie genkai is… breathtaking in use." The Hokage took another drag, before sighing. Minato watched the smoke dissipate throughout the room, before finally speaking.

"I'm not familiar with their bloodline limit, Hokage-sama. What exactly is it?"

"Well, it's quite hard to explain. Honestly, I don't really understand what it is myself. To put it as simply as possible, you could say they dabble in… chakra."

Minato hesitated briefly before asking, "Don't all shinobi _technically_ dabble in chakra?"

The Hokage chuckled. "Yes, Minato, we do. What the Baransu clan has is an intimate connection with chakra. In general, they are extraordinary sensory types, because they are hyperaware of chakra. They can read it the way we read a book. How much a person has expended, chakra affinity - minute details that ordinary shinobi like us could never even dream of seeing. The different routes and specific skills they could choose to perfect are limitless." It was the first time Minato had heard the Hokage sound something akin to awestruck. "There are a few who have managed to unlock the Inochiryoku."

"The Inochiryoku, Hokage-sama?"

"A heightened state of chakra. From what I've read - which I admit, is not a lot - it is the highest state of power they can achieve. There have been superficial rumors about the capabilities when activated, but no one is positive what it can do. The clan was very secretive about that."

With enough training, the Baransu clan could have been an unstoppable force. However, they had to stop expanding their power when the threat of Kiri slaughter came about." The Hokage paused, allowing Minato a moment to let all of the information sink in. "It seems now that the secret of the Inochiryoku could die with them, unless young Mei is able to unlock it."

"If you don't mind me asking, Hokage-sama, but what makes this child so important? Why would they kill everyone, but spare her?"

The Hokage made a noise of acknowledgement, getting up from his chair to walk over to the window. He gazed at Konoha, quiet in the early hours of the morning. The shop owners would be waking soon, as the sun was shyly peeking out from the behind the mountains.

"Unsure about the future of their clan," the Hokage started, eyes still on the village below, "the Baransu reached out to a trusted prophet. The prophet said there was girl who would grow to be the most powerful wielder their clan had ever seen. It was said that she will have the power to turn the tides. But he warned them - with great power comes a great risk for an undesired outcome."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the child in Minato's arms. She slept peacefully, completely unaware of the world around her. "This child has the potential for incredible power." The Hokage approached them, placing an aged hand on the child's head. Despite the situation – her clan was most likely gone, as were their men – Hiruzen found it in him to tenderly smile down at the child. "She needs to be trained. She needs to be aware of the power she holds."

Minato nodded, understanding what the Hokage was asking without it needing to be said.

"Take her to the orphanage. You start training her a week from today."

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 **Well, here it is, folks.**

 **Feedback is not only welcome, but it is ENCOURAGED. Let me know what you think.**

 **Please, please keep in mind this is still in the very early stages. I'm testing something out here.**

 **Thank you all for reading!**


	2. Chapter One: Surprise

**Hey everyone! I'm back with the first real chapter.**

 **If you can't tell, I have a lot of time on my hands right now considering it's been less than 48 hours since I posted the story. Also, just wanted to let you guys know that since Mei is in the mix now, the storyline is going to be different. And I'm excited to give a fresh outlook on the story.**

 **Anyway – enjoy!**

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Chapter One: Celebration

"Sensei," I called in a singsong voice, entering his apartment without knocking. This was typical behavior for me. It had become routine for me to pop in every day after Academy classes got out. Most days we would train, others he would give me lessons on what being a shinobi was really like, and occasionally he would treat me to dinner. The memory of the day I met Sensei floated into the forefront of my mind. I had only been four years old, having fallen asleep in my bed at home the night before, only to wake up in an unknown village with the news that my family was dead. Sensei had been the one to break the news to me, looking very uncomfortable as I cried.

Shaking all thoughts of my clan and blood and death from my head, I sent out my chakra to feel for where Sensei was in the apartment. I felt his familiar signature chilling in the kitchen, and raised a brow when I noticed that he was not alone. There was another _massive_ chakra in the room, making me pause as I walked towards the kitchen to greet them. Kushina was here then. I could always spot her chakra in a crowd. I mean, it felt like any other chakra felt, if not much more potent. However, there was a second chakra source within her. It was dark and ancient and took the breath from my lungs. When I first learned to read chakra, I had asked Minato-sensei why she had two signatures. He had simply smiled at me and told me I was too intelligent for my own good. I had retorted that flattery wouldn't get him out of answering.

In the end, I had learned nothing.

"Mei!" came Sensei's surprised, slightly strained voice. I rounded the corner, entering the kitchen before staring at the scene before me blankly. And then I sighed.

My Sensei, Minato Namikaze, stood in the middle of the kitchen, pink apron tied around his neck. His yellow hair was spikier than usual and stained with something that looked suspiciously like flour. With mitted hands, he held a pan that was most likely supposed to contain a cake of some kind, but really just looked like someone had decided to vomit in a pan and cook it at maximum temperatures. Nothing better than some burnt regurgitation for dessert.

If Sensei was messy, Kushina was an absolute wreck. I could hardly see her intense red hair behind all of the flour in it. Her face and dress were covered in what looked like the Vomit Cake batter. There was a tear in her sleeve. She looked like she had just been in battle, and lost. A devastating loss.

Sensei looked like he wanted to crawl under a rock for the next few decades. He sputtered for a second, trying to find a place to put down the cake. However, it looked like most of the kitchen was in a state of disarray. There was no surface left unscathed. Things like milk, eggs, utensils, and a – kunai? I didn't even want to know why they needed that for this… experiment.

I pointed to the trashcan in the corner of the room. "I recommend you put the cake in there. If you value the safety of the people in this room, please just get rid of it."

Sensei scratched the back of his head as Kushina glared at me.

"Hey - we made this cake for you, ya know!" Kushina bellowed, pointing an accusatory finger at me. "Just because it's your birthday doesn't mean you get to be rude!" She stomped towards me and I started to back out of the room, ready to make a break for it, but then there was a hand on my shoulder. Looking behind me, I saw Sensei's sinister smile as he kept me from running away from an enraged Kushina.

The woman grabbed me around the waist before practically throwing me into a chair at the kitchen table. "You're going to sit down and enjoy this cake, even if it kills you."

"But what if it does," I complained, banging my head against the table. The look Kushina sent my way told me that it was in my best interest to keep my mouth shut. Sensei looked like he was cursing whatever being had decided to make me his student.

Sensei took a seat beside me, and Kushina the one across. The late afternoon sunlight was filtering in through the window, pleasantly lighting up the kitchen. I couldn't help the soft smile that wormed its way onto my face, even with the threat of Kushina's fist in my eye was still high. And then I realized something –

"Huh," I acknowledged, "didn't even realize it was my birthday today."

Sensei chuckled, ruffling my hair. "Happy birthday, Mei." Next thing I knew, there was a box with an artfully tied ribbon and wrapping paper sitting on the table right in front of me. "This is from both Kushina and I."

"Present!" I squealed before I could stop myself.

I'd like to say I opened it with grace. That I slowly, calmly, and with class untied the ribbon and peeled off the wrapping paper. However, that was not how things went down. I savagely pulled at the paper, ripping it and the ribbon off in less than a second. The couple looked at me like I was an animal out in the wild.

My breath caught in my throat. Before me was a set of various kunai, shuriken, Makibishi spikes, explosive tags, and one kunai modelled after the special ones Sensei had.

"Th-thank you." I looked at them, eyes wide.

Kushina snorted at my reaction. There was probably a mad gleam in my eye. The Academy only ever let us dabble with weapons – and they were never very good. Never balanced correctly or just defective hand me downs from retired shinobi. These… these were state of the art. I started to reach for them, still awestruck, before a voice brought my wonder to a startling halt.

"You can't use with these until you graduate from the Academy," warned Sensei, pulling the box away from me. I pouted. "Just know that once you get promoted to Genin, these will be here waiting for your overly eager hands."

After that we chatted for a bit. They asked about how the Academy was going, I asked if they were going to get married any time soon. As usual, the question turned both of their cheeks the color of Kushina's hair. If I felt like concentrating, I could probably feel their chakra boiling with embarrassment. I followed up with asking if I could be in the wedding, causing Kushina to flick me in the forehead.

"Ow!" I rubbed the newly tender skin of my forehead. "You didn't have to put chakra behind that."

"Cake time!" Kushina chanted in response, jumping up from her seat and heading towards the pan of doom. I felt myself pale and looked at Sensei for some help. He looked at me sympathetically but offered no assistance. I rolled my eyes. It was easy to see that Kushina wore the pants here.

Getting up from my seat, I started towards the door at breakneck speed. "Sorry, Kushina, but I 'gotta go!"

Minato-sensei suddenly turned in his seat. "Mei, wait! I have something to talk to you about."

Not wanted to take the risk, I waved his words off. "Just tell me tomorrow at training, Sensei. I've got places to be, people to bug." And by some miracle from whatever God was above, the fastest man in Konoha was not fast enough to catch his wayward student before I slipped out of the front door. "Thanks for the present!"

* * *

I walked around Konoha aimlessly, not really in the mood to sit in my apartment alone. Sure, I could have stayed at Sensei's apartment, but I valued my health. That, and I enjoyed keep all of my food in my tummy, where it could actually be digested rather than used as kitchen floor décor.

Konoha was really beautiful. There were trees all along the borders of the village, and they were usually vibrant and green. In the spring, when all of the flowers began to bloom, the village was so colorful. I don't remember much from the village I had been born in, but I know that it had been bleak. I remember the sheen of mist that always seemed to be present, constantly blocking out the sun. I remember all the different shades of gray the village was. I remember always feeling chilled to my very core during my time there – but I'm not sure that was just from the climate.

I loved the colors. I loved the noise of civilians in their shops, families walking along the streets, the occasional sound of amateur ninja landing on rooftops. I love the way everyone smiled and waved at each other on a busy Saturday morning.

Without realizing it, I had wondered closer towards the Hokage Tower, where a lot of the restaurants were. I patted my stomach, wondering when I'd started letting it guide me. I guess that meant it was time to get some food. I started heading towards Ichiraku Ramen Shop – the perfect birthday meal, in my opinion – when someone called my name.

I turned to see a boy with goggles waving his arms at me energetically – Obito Uchiha. He began to run in my direction when I noticed Rin Nohara trailing behind him at a much more casual pace.

As Obito reached me, he hooked an arm shoulder to steady himself as he gasped for breath. I was a lot shorter than him, so he was bent over slightly. He was trying to speak, but breathing seemed to take priority right then.

"Happy birthday, Mei!" Rin smiled as she approached, giving me a one-armed hug on the side that Obito wasn't hanging off of. I was too shocked to return it, because _Wow, I couldn't remember the last time I'd been hugged._

"Ye-yeah. Happy… birthday." Obito straightened up, still winded and breathing heavy, but seemingly able to stand on his own now. He had finally managed to start breathing at a normal when his stomach growled loudly. Rin and I laughed as he grinned sheepishly, face coloring. "Heh," he mumbled.

"Come on." I steered the two of them in the direction of Ichiraku's, a smile on my face.

Dinner was… interesting to say the least. Obito spent it shyly looking at Rin, adoration blatant in his eyes. Rin spent it being oblivious Obito's stare, happily making conversation with the both of us. I spent it devouring the bowl of ramen in front of me.

I think I zoned out for a while because I was startled enough to jump when Obito practically shouted something like, "I'm going to be Hokage!"

Rin smiled at him, and without a shred of doubt said, "I'll support you."

Obito looked as if he would sprout wings and fly any second.

"Mei?" Rin spoke up, pushing her finished bowl of ramen to the side. I looked up, thinking she was going to make a comment about my horrid eating habits, but she just looked at me quizzically – like she had a question she wanted to ask. I glanced at Obito, who was still happily munching away. The noise I made through the noodles in my mouth would have had my mother – were she still alive – lecturing me about how to be a proper lady, but Rin seemed to understand that this meant she could carry on with her question. "Well, you started the academy late. I was just wondering if you still get to graduate with the rest of us."

"Yep," I popped the P, nodding. "I'm right on track to graduate with you guys next year."

"Wait – but you joined the class last year. We've all been here since we were four." Obito noted through a mouthful of ramen, looking at me skeptically. "Are you a genius or something?"

I burst out laughing at the idea. "Me? A genius? No way." I tried to control my giggles. "I've had a… private tutor before the Academy that helped me get caught up." The original plan had been that I didn't go to the Academy at all, and just learn under Minato-sensei until Hokage-sama decided I was ready to be a Genin and gave me the test himself. However, for some reason, last year Sensei had decided it was time for me to give the Academy a try on top of our training schedule.

After dinner - which I told Teuchi to put on Sensei's tab - I walked leisurely towards my apartment, saying goodbye to Rin and Obito as they split ot head to their respective houses. As cheesy as it may sound - I had a smile on my face the entire walk home. Like I said, Konoha was a place I'd grown to love.

My apartment building was pretty small - with only a handful of other tenants living in the building. I think the building was used primarily for orphans that were old enough to live away from the overcrowded orphanage. Once I had been old enough, I'd talked to the Hokage about setting me up with this swanky place. I didn't have to pay for anything yet, as I didn't have a source of income until I finally started taking missions. I wasn't sure who picked up the tab on this place, but I'd have to make sure to thank them whenever I found out. I made a mental note to ask the Hokage about that.

The minute I unlocked my apartment door and swung it open, I knew something was wrong. Someone had been in my apartment while I was away. I still didn't know enough about fuinjutsu to seal up my apartment – _thanks a lot, Minato-sensei._ So really the only thing protecting it were the locks, which were child's play to a ninja on a mission. Chakra residue stuck to the room, left behind like muddy footprints on my carpet. Since they left behind a trail at all, that was another indicator that the intruder was a ninja. Civilians tend to have weak chakra signatures. To keep with the metaphor I used earlier, they were hardly an imprint on said carpet.

My apartment was small – practically a closet with a bathroom and a kitchen attached as an afterthought. I didn't have many personal belongings, let alone anything valuable. There wasn't much to take if someone were to break in for theft. I started a quick sweep of the apartment to see if anything was taken. Less than five minutes later, the search was complete. Aaaand I learned nothing. Everything was in its place. No stolen items. No traps or explosives left behind to bring my short life to an untimely end.

I closed my eyes and focused on the lingering chakra signature, trying to see where it was the most concentrated in the apartment. The dresser and the bedside table.

I traced the intruder's steps, stopping in front of my small wooden dresser that I'd shoved in a corner of the room. Confused, I opened up each drawer individually, searching through the contents. All I had in these dressers were a few shinobi outfits, t-shirts, socks, and underwear. I tried not to think about the idea that someone was snooping through an eight-year old's underwear drawer. The only other thing that could be of any interest to the intruder was the picture of Sensei and I that I kept framed on the top of the dresser, but that didn't make any sense to me.

I moved on to the bedside table. The surface was bare except for a lamp, which was still there so at least they didn't steal that. There was a drawer with this nightstand, but I kept it empty. I was about to walk away, but something told me to just check the drawer. I shrugged. _Can't hurt,_ I thought as I yanked open the drawer.

Inside was an ancient looking book, bound in aged leather. The book looked like it had taken a trip to hell and back, held together by a string of twine tied around the body. Picking it up gingerly, I carefully untied the twine. Making sure it didn't reduce to dust in my hands, I flipped open the front cover. There was a handwritten note on the first page. I read it over and over again, my frown growing more pronounced.

 _This should help with your training. A little something light the way to greatness. Make sure to get big and strong. And always remember, you are so special._

 _Happy birthday._

I flipped to the next page and gasped. There on the page, inscribed in thick black ink, was my clan name. Directly underneath of it, the words: _A Study of Kekkie Genkai and the_ _Inochiryoku._

Then I said something that would have had Sensei smacking the back of my head. "Well, _shit._ "

* * *

 **The end of the first chapter from Mei's POV.**

 **The one, the only Kakashi Hatake will finally make his grand entrance next chapter.**

 **Before you go, just a few questions:**

 **Opinions of Mei? Thought on the book + mysterious note? What do you think Mei should do about it?**

 **Stay tuned! & Thank you for reading!**

 **Remember to review and tell me what's up.**


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